The Teaching of Book-Keeping in the Hedge Schools of Ireland

Abstract

Relative to other developed countries, very little has been published on the history of Irish accounting education. The objective of this paper is to partly remedy this deficiency by investigating, using a combination of primary and secondary sources, the teaching of book-keeping in the hedge schools of Ireland, mainly during the eighteenth century. Hedge schools have achieved a prominent and colourful place in Irish history, and prior studies have tended to examine the general phenomenon of hedge schools; whereas this paper specifically focuses on the teaching of book-keeping in these establishments. This paper argues that knowledge of practical book-keeping methods was an important skill, along with the related usage of the English language, in gaining employment for Irish Catholics during the period of oppression that was the eighteenth century. These skills were also valuable to Irish emigrants. Furthermore, Irish hedge schoolmasters applied their teaching and book-keeping skills in other countries such as Australia and the United States.